Luck is Fate
by lizzy-1809
Summary: Andrea moves to Gotham to escape her past, and gets more than what she bargained for when she lands in the middle of the biggest drug ring in Gotham history. Takes place after TDK.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N So I decided to start another fan fic! Hope you guys enjoy this one as much as I will writing it! :)**

Chapter 1: A whole new place

Andrea silently looked over her tiny new apartment. She had bought a week ago, and spent a week cleaning. It was like spring cleaning, in the middle of winter. She was exhausted, but tremendously proud. She could restart her life, and she felt leaving Boston and moving to Gotham was the best decision she had made in a while. Even though she had to leave her beloved Victorian home behind, she felt that this tiny apartment was more of a home than the Victorian, and more understanding. It was, well, cozy.

As she was appraising her work, her cell phone started ringing. She hummed along with her ring tone before she finally picked up.

"Hello?"

"An? It's Meg. Where are you? I haven't heard from you in a month!" Her best friends voice was a mixture of panic and relief.

"Meg! It's great to hear from you. Look, I moved to Gotham and have just settled in."

"What?! You moved…but I thought you loved Boston…" her voice was trailing off, meaning she was hurt.

"I'll tell you why soon. It was just very sudden. I had to get away. I needed to start a new life, without…them."

"Oh, I understand." She heard a ruckus on the other phone.

"You ok?" Andrea asked.

"I'm packing my suitcase. I'm coming to visit soon. What's your address?"

Andrea pulled out the deed to the apartment. "Apartment 6A, Mondrago Lane, Gotham City." She faintly heard her friend writing down the address.

"An, expect a visit, well, soon. Jeff's home. Talk to you soon!"

"Bye Meg. Tell Jeff I said Hi!"

"Bye!"

She felt bad that she hadn't talked to Meg in over a month. In college, they were inseparable. But she had bigger things to worry about. Like a job. She went out into the hall and "borrowed" her neighbors' newspaper, and then read the wanted ads.

XXX

_An hour later…_

Andrea still had no jobs. Then one caught her eye. It read…

_Security Guard._

_Part-Time _

_Needs to have past experience._

_Can be either a male or female._

_Call 555-4623 for more info_

Andrea made a quick call.

"Hello." A man answered.

"Hi. I'm calling about your job offer."

"You got experience?"

"Yes, sir."

"Alright, well come to the Wayne Enterprises building, tomorrow at 8 am, and go to the Basement. A man named Sean Crane will be waiting for you. You understand?"

"Yes, sir. Tomorrow at 8 am."

"I'll be expecting you. Goodbye." He hung up, not waiting for a reply.

Andrea went to be early that night, excited at having a job already. They must be desperate, she mused. And with the past couple months; she couldn't blame them for being shorthanded. She then drifted off into a dreamless sleep, unaware that her future was going to change rapidly. And it started with that job.

A/N Hope you guys like it! Please R&R! :)


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N No reviews…so sad. Oh well. Well here is chapter two! :)**

Chapter 2: My new job

Andrea woke up early, nervous about her new job. She left her apartment, and took a 15 minute ride to the Wayne Enterprises building. She parked her car in the parking garage across the street. It was 7:45. She was early.

She went in the building only to see a beautiful fountain, made of ivory, come to greet her. Well, she expected no less, coming from a multi-billionaire.

She quickly found the elevator, and went to push the button for basement, when she realized they had more than one basement. Oh no. She looked at the 6 buttons that led to a basement somewhere in this gigantic building. She closed her eyes and pressed one, the fourth one. The elevator made no sound in its descent, and she quickly let out a sigh of relief when she noticed a man waiting for her. He went to meet her.

"You Andrea?" he asked. He was in mid thirties, with short brown hair and piercing gray eyes. He looked like the kinda guy you did not mess with, almost like an army general.

"Yes. Andrea Parker. Nice to meet you Mr…."

"Crane. Sean Crane." He shook her hand politely and firmly. "Follow me."

He led her down the corridor. The walls were ivory colored, but you could tell they were brick. Her door was steel, and very plain. She followed him in. The inside consisted of a nice wood desk, with a state of the art computer on it. Even low on the food chain people like her got fancy computers. The desk also had a telephone and some other items she might need. She also had tile flooring and a door leading somewhere, with a finger scanner beside it. He began to explain her job.

"Your computer is hooked to cameras. You can see everything going on on this floor. You will ask the people passing through for their ID's. You will take this UV light pen and look at the bottom right hand corner of their card. If you do not see B.W. in purple letters, do not let them in. If they try to hurt you, press this red button and help will come shortly. Here is your ID card, and if you will put your finger to the scanner, it will accept you. Any questions?"

"Nope. I think you covered them all." Andrea then put her finger to the scanner, and it accepted her immediately.

"You have a 30-minute lunch break, and you may were whatever to work. Please, however, no skirts. You can't exactly kick in them can you?" He smiled.

Andrea smiled back. "Thank you very much. But I do have one question. How will I receive payment?"

"It goes straight to your bank account. Any more?"

"No, sir. Thank you very much."

"Your welcome."

He left, and Andrea sat down. Her office was nice, but bare. She felt maybe a plant would cheer things up. She sat down and then waited for someone to come in.

XXX

**Six Hours Later….**

Andrea packed up after getting a visit from her boss, telling her she could leave. It was only 2:30. He said another person got the night shift, but they didn't arrive until 8:30 that night. And they had a different office, and Mr. Crane had given her permission to decorate in any way she wanted.

As she was exiting the elevator, she turned the corner and bumped into a woman. She dropped her change and coffee. She must be an assistant, Andrea thought. When she was finished helping her, the woman smiled at her. She was a very pale woman, with freckles dotting her cheeks and reddish auburn hair tumbling down her shoulders.

"Thank you. My name is Jen, by the way."

"Andrea. I'm so sorry about your coffee."

"It's nothing," she replied. "Hey, you leaving already?"

"Yeah, I work part time."

"I see. You want to go for an early dinner?"

"Sure, I'd love to! When do you get off work?" Andrea was happy. She had made a fried on her first day!

"Well I'm done, just bringing Mrs. Lover boys girlfriend her coffee. Can you hold up a sec?"

"Sure."

"K, see you in a sec."

XXX

**Three Hours Later…**

Andrea went into her apartment, happy that Jen and her were already fast friends. They went to a nice Café and then went for a stroll in Wayne Park. Must everything be named after that man? She though as curled up in bed, a good read in her hands. She drifted off into sleep around 9.

**A/N Don't worry, Andrea will meet Mr. Wayne soon, and then the plot will unravel after that. I have to warn you though; it will be slow, gradual hints. I'm hoping the plot will be in full swing by at least Ch. 8 or 9… As always, Please R&R! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Hey guys, I'm back! I was on vacation to Scotland, and they had no free Wi-Fi and my dad said I couldn't bring my laptop. But I'm back and will try to update at least once a day! **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing…:( Except Andrea and anyone you don't recognize. :) And I don't own any connections to Camp Hope-for-Us (if their even is one…)**

Chapter 3: Curiosity isn't a good thing

As the weeks went by, Andrea became more and more curious about what exactly she was guarding. The visits became more frequent from the men, and everything was packed in crates with no labels or markings on them. She began to get suspicious. Maybe they had stolen items, or drugs, or even illegal weapons. The more she thought about it, the more her hunch seemed to be correct. They had also picked the perfect to hide the "goods". No one would ever suspect Mr. Wayne to be hiding illegal items, and they could bail if they suspected something, leaving all the evidence in Mr. Wayne's basement. So she formulated a plan. She wasn't allowed to go in the room unless it was an emergency, so she decided to do some background checks. As the men walked to her office, she would stop the tape and get their pictures. Maybe she could bring the pictures to the police. But then she would go to jail for helping them. So she would have to Google them and keep the pictures just in case.

The next day, Andrea paid close attention to the names, and since only the usual five men came, it wasn't hard to memorize their names. When she got home, after politely declining lunch with Jen, and set to work on her laptop. She pulled out the paper with their names on it.

Richard Simmons.

Daniel Marek.

Dirk Shermen.

Mark Glyce.

Bob Rodgers.

And her boss of course, Sean Crane.

Andrea goggled her boss first. What came up was surprising. The first webpage came to a genealogy. It turned out that he was the bastard son of Jonathan Crane, who was only 20 when dad tried to take over Gotham. He also had a history of crimes, but they were minor. He had gotten into fights, shoplifted, and even hijacked a couple cars. But supposedly he had gone to a camp for people who need "help", called Camp Hope-for-Us, naturally owned by Bruce Wayne. He had returned a changed man, and Bruce Wayne had hired him, making him a security guard. He had no more casualties on his record, but I didn't trust him, not after what I knew from his previous record. I printed out that page, and began to search the other men.

Richard Simmons had a history of trading illegal items. He had done it for a couple years, and then quit, but laid low. The police have given up on him, and he remains at large today. He was the burly man, she remembered. "Better stay out of his way", she murmured. She typed in Daniel Marek next.

Daniel's record was clean. He had been in the antique business for 20 years, and sold many pieces worldwide. He had an eye for good quality pieces, and specialized in Chinese antiques, mostly vases.

Dirk Shermen was an ex-thug of Falcone, and had only served 3 years because he was a minor at the time. Andrea remembered him as the one who always greeted her, and always said please and thank you. "Why is he with these men?" she murmured. He might be an ex-thug, but his record was spotless otherwise.

Mark Glyce used to work for an international shipping company, and specializes in transporting fragile items. He had been caught once taking an invaluable artifact, claiming he needed to feed his family, since wages were not so good. They let him go, and he retired at the age of 40. He has been known to transport items for Daniel Marek. Their was one connection, but if Andrea remembered correctly, they had never came in at the same time, always at different times.

And last but not least, Bob Rodgers. He had been Falcone's right hand man oversees, overseeing the drugs in Asia. He had been presumes dead when the US military burned down the factory.

Andrea looked at the printouts she held in her hand. None of these men had preformed a crime in years, but maybe they were planning something big. She needed to tell someone, but whom? She had only begun to know Jen, and she couldn't go to the police department, for fear of being arrested. Maybe she could tell Bruce Wayne, like he'd believe her. She was working with criminals. Maybe she could tell Jen. Or she could quit.

Andrea thought about it. Sean would want to know why, and she was a terrible liar. Scratch that idea. She looked at the time. It was 11:16 pm. Maybe a walk in the park could help her clear her head and sort out her thoughts.

She pulled on a light blue parka, with a white turtleneck underneath. She kept her jeans on, and pulled on her favorite white fuzzy boots. She put her keys and cell phone in her pocket, and headed out of the apartment complex. She walked in silence, the only sound being her boots crunching the snow. It was 2 weeks until Christmas, and everyone had some holiday spirit. She looked at the wreaths and lights strung on doors and windows, and Merry Christmas signs were everywhere. That reminded her that she needed to go shopping for Jen, Mr. Baxter, and Mrs. White. Mr. Baxter was her neighbor who looked to bake and more often than once, she would find a box of sweets at her door. He said they were gifts for Christmas. Mrs. White was another neighbor who had offered her one of the 10 kittens her cat had had when they turn 6 weeks, in a couple days.

She finally made it too the park, and was walking on one of the paths near the lake when she noticed someone else on the path. She went to go say hello, but as she got closer, she noticed it was Sean and Daniel. They were talking in whispers, but she heard something that froze her to the core. Sean had said, "Kill Andrea before Christmas, and this time, don't leave any evidence."

**A/N Hope you like it! I'll try to get Ch. 4 out tonight. (it's in the revising stage.) Please remember to R&R! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N So I made an outline of the story, and was so excited that I decided to continue minutes after I published Ch.3. This chapter was revised many times, and required a lot of pain medication. Consider yourselves loved. :) PS I am also going to make it first person, since I feel you get more emotion from it. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. :( Not even Biff.**

Chapter 4: Why must my phone ring now?!

I was staring at Sean and Daniel in shock. "Kill me? But I didn't know anything. Or do I?" I thought, silently backing away. They were about to shake hands when the inevitable happened.

No, Batman did not show up.

No, I did not win the lottery.

Yes, Meg chose the perfect time to call me.

As my ringtone broke the silence, I stood petrified as Sean and Daniel's heads looked my way. Then, adrenaline began to coarse through my veins as I saw Daniel pull out a gun. I immediately began to sprint to the exit. I could hear them following me. I was so glad I took track in high school, but I was no match for these men, who were highly trained as smugglers, probably as assassins too. The exit was within my grasp when my feet were knocked down from under me. I fell to the ground and huffed as the air was knocked out of my lungs. I rolled into a ditch that was a frozen river bed.

Tears began to spring up in my eyes, but I shook my head and tried to figure a way out of this mess. I rolled over and saw both Sean and Daniel headed for me, evil looks on their face. I started praying and began to stand up. I wasn't going to give up with out a fight.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" Sean was advancing and I was trying to backup. I made a split second decision and turned and ran. I didn't get far on the ice before I heard the gunshot. My left leg crumpled, and somewhere, someone shrieked this high pitched scream that would have made my blood run cold, only I realized that scream was from me. I examined the wound. It had gone across the back of my leg, ripping my calf muscle. I was as good as dead. It was completely numb and the fire for the gunshot was spreading. I was gasping in pain, and slowly watching my soon-to-be-killers advance on me.

Sean was still laughing, that jerk. "It seems I didn't hit a vital organ. Oh well, that can quickly be changed."

Time slowed down.

I could see Sean raising the gun and about to shoot, only for this mass of black to ram him from the side and know the gun out of his hands. They disappeared over the hill, and I began to limp out of the ditch, when I heard Daniel behind me. "Going somewhere?" I slowly turned around. Daniel was behind me, gun in hand. I slowly exhaled and began to wish that black thing had hit him too.

And my wish came true.

I felt adrenaline rush through me and turned and ran. I couldn't feel the pain in my leg, and I found an alley near the park and sat down, only to hear someone behind me. I hid in the shadows near this gross, slimy, and smelly dumpster, and watched as Sean came into view. He had a bloody nose and his left arm was at a weird angle. He had this wild look in his eyes and I, for some stupid reason, was reminded of Biff from Back to the Future, only Sean had a gun in his hands and wanted to blow my brains out.

I held my breath as he called out my name. "Andrea? Oh where are you Andrea? I know you're out there!!" I was remind again of Jonathan Crane, his father, and thought maybe Sean belonged in his asylum, Arkham Asylum. Both father and son were remarkably alike, not only in appearance, but mentally as well.

I almost jumped for joy as he left, probably going to search another alley, but something me to it.

Yes, my phone rang again.

And yes, it was Meg.

As Sean whipped around, that black thing rammed him again, and he hit the wall with a crunch and fell to the ground, and stayed still. I slowly walked forward, thinking he was dead, when I saw his chest rise and fall.

"You okay?" I jumped a mile at the sound of another voice. I whipped around, only to notice that the black thing was a person in disguise. He looked familiar, but I could place him.

"Y-yes. Thank you. F-for what you did."

"He tilted his head. "That's my job. Can you make home ok?"

"Yes, that I can do."

"Great." He turned away, but then looked over his shoulder. "Please watch you back. And turn that phone off!" And just like that, he was gone. Then, everything come crashing down like an avalanche. The pain in my leg, the thought of almost being killed, and my savior in a black suit.

As I came to my senses, I heard police sirens in the distance. I didn't want to get caught, so I ran home, going though the back alleys and then, ignoring my leg, ran up the six stories to my building, and collapsed behind my door. My leg hurt like Hell, and I quickly found a first aid kit. I cleaned my leg and let out a string of profanities under my breath when the antiseptic touched my wound. I am not the kind of person who curses, but I felt this called for it.

I then went into the bathroom to start the bath when I stopped short at my reflection. My chestnut curls were going every which way and my face was grimy with dirt and sweat. My clothes were tattered, and I had this look in my eyes that scared me. I was a wreak. Then I giggled. Maybe that's why that man left in a hurry. I was still laughing when I turned the tub on. I then took a long bath and by the time I had finished and gotten ready for bed, it was 4 o' clock in the morning. I decided I didn't need to go to work, so I slept in until 12:30pm.

_XXX_

I decided over my late breakfast/lunch that I should call Meg back. I quickly found her number and called her back.

"Hello?"

"Meg? Hey, it's Andrea."

"An!! OMG, how are you?"

"Fine. But why on earth were you calling me last night?"

"Oh, I think Amy got a hold of my phone." Amy was Meg's 3-year-old daughter.

"I see."

"Yes, well I'm sorry," she snapped. "Jeff's gone on a business trip and I've been exhausted. Anyway, have you met anyone over there?"

"Yes, I have. There is this nice secretary were I work, and her name is Jen. She and I go out to lunch almost everyday."

"So I got replaced?" Meg said with mock horror.

"No silly! Nothing could replace my friendship with you! I just needed a friend, that's all."

"Well, I decided to come over a couple days after Christmas. How does that sound?"

"Wonderful. I have a spare room and the couch bed. You going to be bringing Jeff and Amy?"

"Probably just Amy. Jeff won't finish his business trip until a couple days before New Year's."

"Ok, I'll be waiting. Oh, and Meg?"

"Yes?"

"Please don't tell _**them.**_" Putting emphasis on them.

"My lips are sealed."

"Thanks. Look, I gotta go."

"K, bye!"

"Bye."

I hung up the phone. I was so tempted to tell Meg that Amy had almost gotten me killed, but it was my fault for not learning from my mistake.

I decided to head to Jen's office and see if she wanted to go to lunch. I looked at my watch. It was 1:00. I needed to head over to make her 1:15 to 1:45 lunch break. I got dressed in a loose pair of jeans, so I wouldn't hurt my calf. I was only slightly limping, which was great. I then put on my favorite boots and a pretty green turtleneck, with a white jacket. I left my hair down and put almost no a makeup on. Then I locked up, put my cell phone on vibrate, and headed to the Wayne Tower.

_XXX_

I climbed in the elevator, and pushed the button for floor 50, the highest floor, and where Jen worked as a secretary to Bruce Wayne's personal secretary. As I stepped out, I was amazed at the fountain in front of me. It had mermaids and fish and other sea creatures. I absolutely loved it. Then I went off to go find Jen.

I saw her almost immediately, in her desk, behind a bunch of papers, speaking into the phone and gesturing wildly. That must her Italian blood. She once told me that she is 75% Scottish and 25% Italian and German. I walked over as soon as she hung up the phone.

"Hey Jen."

She looked up, and took of her reading glasses. She did a double take when she looked at me. "Hey yourself. Where have you been? I called your office all morning and they said you quit."

"That's why I'm here to talk to you. It's your lunch break and I need to talk." I don't know why, but I made up my mind then and there to talk to her about what happened last night.

She peered at me. Then she stood up, told her boss she was leaving, and we headed to the elevator together. "Are you in any danger? Is that why you can't talk?"

"You get right to the point, don't you? We'll talk over lunch, ok?"

"Ok." We then talked about Christmas and the upcoming tree lighting ceremony, until we reached the restaurant. I made Jen wait (which she got made at. She has no patience whatsoever.) until we had ordered the food and then I sighed and began…

_XXX_

"…and then I called Meg only to find out it was Amy who had been calling me." I took another sip of my second hot cocoa, while Jen stared at me.

"Wow." Was all she could muster.

I had only stopped twice during my storytelling, if you want to call it that: once for the waiter to bring the food, and once for Jen to see my bandaged calf. The best part was, she believed me, and she was going to help me. I also told her my plan about sneaking into Sean's house, since he mentioned yesterday when I got off of work that he was going to Asia for a two week vacation. Coincidence. I think not. And neither did Jen.

"So you almost got killed due to the fact a 3-year-old was playing with her mom's phone?"

"Yep. But I forgive her. I mean, I could have turned my phone off, but I didn't."

"True…" Jen was deep in thought. I motioned to the waiter to give us the check when Jen's phone began to ring. She looked at it, and her face drained of color. "What time is it?"

I looked at my watch. Then it was my turn to have my face drained. "3:30" I whispered.

Jen didn't even bother to answer the phone. We quickly paid and walked the six blocks back to the Wayne tower. I walked her up to the elevators and was prepared to go inside when I heard someone call my name. I turned around and was face to face with the man I least wanted to see. My ex-fiancée.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N Hey guys, I am so sorry I did not update sooner. I had to go to the library yesterday with my brother, and it rained, and we rode our bikes. So I was stranded there for 3 hours, and to make matters worse, they had no internet. Anyway, next week I will try to update as much as possible, but I have Band/Drill Camp. Thanks for being so corporative! :) And now *drum roll*is Chapter 5! **

Chapter 5: I will never be a Ninja. Period.

My heart froze in my chest. I was staring at the man I never wanted to see again. All of my pain and sorrow came crashing down. Then, I noticed his different smile and a different lady on his arm. Then I smiled so big. It was neighbor, Mr. Singleton. I had had the same scare last week when I had first met him. If it was true that everyone had a look-a-like in the world, Mr. Singleton and my ex-fiancée would win that trophy. Scary thing is, there not related whatsoever. I turned back to Jen, waved her off, and headed over to meet them, the pain and sorrow gone.

"Hey Mr. Singleton! How are you? I didn't know you worked in the Wayne tower."

"Hey Andrea. No, I don't work here, but you do, and I need your help." I was taken aback. What on earth could I help them with? I guess my face gave away my confusion because Mrs. Singleton, who is old fashioned, took my arm and led me to the exit.

"Honey, we need you to help put up the Christmas decorations in our apartment. David has a bad leg, and I am very scared of heights. It'll only take a couple hours." I smiled, delighted. I had never help anyone put up Christmas decorations since…well, I'm not going to finish that thought. I realized she was still speaking. By this time, we were outside and stepping toward her blue Chevy. "I will have hot chocolate and cookies ready for you. You deserve some if you are going to be on a ladder all day." I smiled and headed to her car. I had till 11 pm to get out of there; it was 4, and then till 11:30 to get to Sean's house and meet Jen at thI got in the car and prepared myself while attentively listening to Mrs. Singleton. This was going to be so much fun!

_XXX_

"Bye!" I yelled. "Thank you for everything!"

"Bye Andrea!" Came the reply. I shut the door and made my way to the elevator with boxes of cookies and some decorations for my apartment.

I had some trouble opening the door, but I managed all right. I set them down on the kitchen counter, and then raided my fridge for something to eat. I grabbed a hot dog and popped it in the microwave. Then I noticed the time. It was 9:30, and I still hadn't gotten my stuff ready. It took about a 30 minute drive, but I would have to park 6 blocks over, so lets add another 15 minutes. I still couldn't believe the time. I had been having so much fun at the Singleton's, I totally forgot about the breaking and entering tonight. I wolfed down my hot dog and got dressed in my black boots, jeans, and turtleneck, with a nice blue parka. I then ran down the stairs, and furiously scrubbed the ice of my windshield.

I finally was able to step in the car and see out the front window. I hastily started the car and groaned when I noticed the bumper to bumper traffic up ahead. I made a quick decision to do a detour, and still got stuck in bumper to bumper traffic. I sighed and waited it out humming along to the Christmas songs playing non-stop on the radio.

_XXX_

I finally arrived at Sean's house, sweating from anticipation and my car heater. I didn't even bother to park six blocks away. I was too tired and nervous. I looked at my watch as I shrugged my coat on and got out of the door. It read 11:10. Well, I would have been 20 minutes late if I had taken the main road. I slowly climbed up the walkway and noticed the eerie silence, as if nature was against us. I felt as if I was being watched. I quickened my pace, making more noise by crunching the snow. I hurriedly found Jen sitting on the back porch. I almost missed her, because she had blended into the shadows. I nodded at her and climbed the porch steps, and pulled the bobby pin from my hair and proceeded to pick the lock.

"Are you sure we can do this?" Jen asked, her voice breaking the serene silence, but it was surprisingly calm.

"Jen", I replied, my voice laced with venom, as I turned around to face her. "He tried to murder me. Murder me! And I am not allowed to break into his house?! To find out where his thugs and cronies are located?!"

Jen held up her hands in defeat. "Okay, okay! Jeez."

I quickly turned back to the lock, feeling bad about snapping at Jen. I fueled my guilt into opening the lock, and whispered a silent cheer when I heard a click. I opened the door, and was glad Sean oiled his door. It was silent. We walked in, and looked around. He looked to be a very wealthy man, with expensive artifacts and articles around the house. It had that manly touch to it, and I had this strange feeling of déjà vu. I looked at Jen.

"I'll find the study and search upstairs. You can search down here." She nodded and we fanned out our separate ways.

I decided to search upstairs first. I found the stairs and headed up them. I was glad the steps didn't creak on the way up. I quickly searched his bedroom, and found nothing out of the ordinary. No guns, drugs, or anything illegal. I did find a scrap of paper with the word Sean written on it, underneath the dresser. I decided to keep it nonetheless. He had 5 rooms upstairs: his bedroom, the bathroom, a guest room, his study, and a "man cave". His bathroom suggested nothing. I couldn't even find a speck of mold. Maybe he's OCD, I thought. Or a clean freak. I chuckled at that thought. The man cave had a huge flat screen, a couple couches, a pool table, a dart board, barstools, and a bar. The bar had numerous glasses with different places written on them, like souvenir beer glasses. Everything was once again spotless. The guest room was empty. I even decided to hit the walls and floors to listen for hollow spots. I was beginning to feel like this was a bad idea. Maybe he had taken everything, knowing I would come here, and burned everything overseas. But when I began to search the study, I figured out something. I'd hit the jackpot.

_XXX_

**Downstairs…**

Jen was searching through the piles of bills and mail on the kitchen counter. She thought about what she had found prior to looking in the kitchen. Contrary to Andrea's spotless upstairs, the downstairs area was messy. There was garbage everywhere, and some of his electronics didn't even work. He'd left his laptop, so she decided to take it. Someone in the Wayne Tower could hack into it. She quickly searched the other rooms. When she heard Andrea checking for hollow spots, she began to do the same. Nothing.

This changed when she entered the kitchen. Bills everywhere, unwashed dishes, and stairs to the basement. She quickly sorted through the mail. Bills from almost two months ago were in there. Then she found something. All of Sean's bills where from Wayne Enterprises. But this bill came from Happy Cleaners. She quickly skimmed it. She gasped in surprise. Sean had hired a maid, but not any maid. Her name was Susan Marek, Daniel's wife. Of course. It clicked. Sean would hire somebody he could trust to rid his house of important information. She found all the rest of the bills to Happy Cleaners, and pocketed them. She would put them back later, when Andrea had read them. She began to feel as if she was on to something.

She decided to search the basement. She found a flashlight in one of the kitchen drawers, and began to descend the stairs.

_XXX_

**Upstairs…**

I'd hit the jackpot. His desk was full of letters and printed out e-mails. I quickly skimmed them. They were from an opium producing company in Hong Kong. They shipped the drugs inside the vases. Then Sean had his thugs pick up the shipments, and put them in crates labeled Wayne Enterprises. It was an elaborate scheme, and no one had picked up on it for 6 years. The last person to, Falcone, died. And he had even been a part of it. It found a piece of scrap paper, and began to write the addresses of all the people Sean was buying from. I then tucked the paper in my coat and walked over to the bookcase behind the desk. I opened a tall, side cabinet connected to the bookcase, and found a safe. Everything was probably in here. I sighed. I decided to find more evidence first.

I was looking through his files, when I noticed a section labeled safe. He had the designs for the safe written out, and had some notes in it too. I began to read.

_Janurary31st_

_Dan and I fetched the safe from the shipping company today. We decided on a five, four number part code. This way no one can break in. Dany, Rich, Dirk, Mark, and I will be become the code. The safe is also programmed to destroy the contents if you mess up more than five times. Good luck, and don't mess up. Those are originals in there. _

_Sean_

_P.S. Guys if you find this, burn after reading._

I sighed, and put the note back. I had more questions then answers. I sat down on the chair behind the desk. I faintly heard Jen moving around downstairs. Hopefully she had some good info for us. I decided to crack the code.

First, I looked at the note once again. I noticed Daniel's name was spelled wrong. Danny had two n's, not one. Then I noticed all of the other names. Only Bob's was left out. _Each name had four letters. His code is five, four number codes._

The ball was rolling. Maybe if I did the names in order, it could open. I ran to the safe, only to realize that the safe had numbers, not letters. It went up to 30. I sat back down again. Then, it hit me.

I grabbed a piece of paper and wrote the alphabet on one side, and numbers on the other side, so they matched. When I was done, it looked like this.

A 1

B 2

C 3

D 4

And so on. I was furiously writing by now. I then took the five names and corresponded each letter in the name and lined it up with its number. It then looked like this.

Dany: 4-1-14-25

Rich: 18-9-3-8

Dirk: 4-9-18-11

Mark: 13-1-18-11

Sean: 19-5-1-14

I kept the names like they were in the note, and went to the safe. I put in Dany's number. I heard a faint click. I then proceeded to put the numbers in. Once I put in the last 14, I heard a click, and the safe opened. I almost whooped with joy. I was about to look in the safe, when I heard someone else breathing in the room.

"Jen?"

No one answered. I felt stupid. Not only was I wearing light clothes, Jen and I had probably made some noise that the neighbors could have alerted the police. But I didn't hear any sirens. Just then, someone spoke.

"I guess you didn't learn your lesson after all."

_XXX_

**Downstairs…**

Jen found everything in the basement. Guns, drugs, illegal stuff. But this finding had cost her a bruise on her shin. She replayed events…

_She had walked down the stairs, flashlight in hand, when she felt something touch her head. She wanted to scream, thinking it was a spider. She reached up and found a string. She pulled, and the room was flooded with a dim light. There were just boxes. It would take her days to go through all of this. As she was walking around she miscalculated and hit a box, tipping it over. Her shin was throbbing. It had been a heavy box. She then heard a noise, and saw the back wall turn around, like in a spy movie. Then, on the wall, was all the evidence she needed to lock Sean in prison, for life._

Jen smiled. Andrea would be proud.

_XXX_

**Upstairs….**

I took a book off the book case and threw it at the voice. The book never hit. I silently whimpered and backed up slowly. I thought it was Daniel, or even Sean. The intruder stepped near the window. I then saw it to be the same man who saved my life earlier. He was a thoughtfully holding the copy of Moby Dick that I threw at him.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were one of them." I said.

He smiled. "It's fine. But." Oh no. I'm in for it now. "You are breaking and entering. And I have to turn you in."

"Um, about that Mr…."

"Batman." I gulped. I was dead meat.

"Right. Well, Mr. Batman, since Sean took the liberty of trying to kill me, I decided to find out why, and who he was dealing with. He needs to be turned in."

Batman was looking at me curiously. "You mean to tell me, Mrs.…"

"Parker. Andrea Parker. And it's Miss."

"My mistake. Anyway, Miss Parker, could you tell me what you have learned?"

I gestured for him to sit down, but when he refused, I began, only to be interrupted by Jen.

She came in the room and not even noticing Batman, began to head over to me.

"An, you won't believe it! All of the evidence is in the basement. Sean could go to prison for life!"

"Really?? Well, I was about to tell Batman my side of the story. Care to listen?"

Jen face paled and after I had pushed her in the chair, began my story.

_XXX_

**Two hours later…**

I had finished my story, and the only sound now was Batman's feet pacing. He then spoke.

"I will leave you two here to work, but I want everything that you find documented, and I will find one of you soon to retrieve it. Then you two will stop this detective work, and I will find them and put them rightfully behind bars. Understood?"

I was grinding my teeth, and my hands formed fists at my side, but I wisely said nothing. Jen said a quick yes, and then Batman jumped out the window.

Jen quickly took pictures of the evidence while I searched a little longer. Then I found it. The list of the known associates. I grabbed it, met Jen downstairs, and drove home. When I got home, it was almost 4. I climbed into bed, and fell asleep. My last thought was about the Batman.


End file.
